Fugitive apprehended by Border Patrol after nearly 30 years

EUREKA, Mont. – Agents from the U.S. Border Patrol’s Eureka Station apprehended a man wanted on a felony warrant on dangerous drugs charges last month at the United States/Canada border near Rexford, Montana.

Agents apprehended the man after receiving information about two suspicious individuals emerging from the trees approximately a quarter mile from the border. In the early hours of April 15, agents found the pair and questioned them regarding their presence in the remote location. Through questioning, agents determined both had illegally entered the United States. One of the individuals was a Canadian citizen, who agents processed for removal, while the other individual, Jacob Moritz, was a naturalized U.S. citizen with an outstanding arrest warrant out of the Southern District of New York. Agents turned Moritz over to the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office and the U.S. Marshals Service later took him into custody.

Moritz’s warrant stems from a 1989 indictment charging him and others with various counts related to the large scale smuggling of marijuana, hashish, and heroin. According to the indictment, the defendants used an ocean-going freighter to smuggle large quantities of drugs from all over the globe from 1970 until 1989. At the time of the indictment, Moritz fled the country.

“This is another excellent example of our agents doing their job to protect our country from those who are here to conduct illegal activities,” Patrol Agent in Charge Paul Farmer said. “It should also be known that Mr. Moritz was uncooperative during questioning, however, that will never stop us from finding out who you are or what you have done in your past. If that includes conducting criminal activities 30 years ago, you will be turned over to the proper authorities and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

Criminal charges are merely allegations. Defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.